Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Exeter and Playa del Carmen

For one person, living is cheaper in Playa del Carmen: $1,204 a month against $2,571 in Exeter, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Exeter
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Exeter Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Playa del Carmen
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Playa del Carmen Living Index

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Exeter

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,571

/mo nomad

Playa del Carmen

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,204

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Exeter and in Playa del Carmen

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Exeter and in Playa del Carmen actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,571 in Exeter versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen.

Exeter $2,571
Playa del Carmen $1,204

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,846 in Exeter versus $2,082 in Playa del Carmen.

Exeter $3,846
Playa del Carmen $2,082

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,121 in Exeter versus $2,959 in Playa del Carmen.

Exeter $5,121
Playa del Carmen $2,959

Living in Exeter is roughly 114% more expensive than in Playa del Carmen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Exeter is 89% above, Playa del Carmen is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.92 £14.88

$10.92 MX$205

82.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.8 £73.1

$43.37 MX$814

125.59%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.57 £7.15

$11.78 MX$221

-18.76%

Cappuccino

$4.96 £3.70

$3.81 MX$71.5

30.18%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.36

$1.28 MX$24.07

147.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.51 £1.87

$0.78 MX$14.70

221.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.45 £5.57

$3.17 MX$59.5

135.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.16 £4.60

$4.93 MX$92.7

24.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.41 MX$26.40

7.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.68 £1.25

$2.22 MX$41.62

-24.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 £1.33

$1.42 MX$26.61

25.35%

Eggs

$4.30 £3.21

$2.52 MX$47.36

70.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.70 £6.50

$7.26 MX$136

19.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.71 £6.51

$7.70 MX$144

13.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.73 £17.72

$12.69 MX$238

87.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.12 £2.33

$2.78 MX$52.3

12.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.43 £1.06

$1.37 MX$25.68

4.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 £1.73

$2.55 MX$47.89

-9.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.19 £2.38

$2.12 MX$39.86

50.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.27 £1.70

$1.94 MX$36.39

17.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.89 MX$35.41

4.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.61 £1.20

$1.15 MX$21.53

40.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 £1.45

$1.18 MX$22.13

65.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.49 £17.54

$4.30 MX$80.6

446.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.54 £7.12

$9.95 MX$187

-4.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.74 £2.79

$1.58 MX$29.73

136.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.30

$2.67 MX$50.1

65.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.92 £2.93

$0.55 MX$10.39

612.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$112 £83.6

$26.62 MX$500

320.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.75 £4.29

$4.97 MX$93.3

15.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.53 £1.89

$3.33 MX$62.5

-24.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.92 £17.86

$5.36 MX$101

346.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.53

$1.44 MX$27.11

41.67%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$38.7K £28.9K

$20.7K MX$388.0K

87.25%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$40.1K £30.0K

$23.5K MX$440.5K

71.09%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$469 £350

$84.8 MX$1,592

452.68%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$15.97 £11.93

$23.41 MX$439

-31.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.00 £35.09

$28.66 MX$538

63.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.72 £29.66

$57.1 MX$1,071

-30.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.18 £9.84

$28.91 MX$543

-54.41%

Cinema Ticket

$12.62 £9.42

$5.14 MX$96.5

145.53%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$2,180 £1,628

$207 MX$3,878

955.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.6K £13.2K

$3,927 MX$73.7K

348.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.0 £50.8

$43.35 MX$814

56.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.16 £23.26

$41.44 MX$778

-24.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 £78.7

$74.2 MX$1,393

42.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.2 £55.4

$89.3 MX$1,676

-16.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,381 £1,031

$980 MX$18.4K

40.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,050 £784

$381 MX$7,150

175.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,160 £1,613

$1,708 MX$32.1K

26.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,946 £1,453

$1,075 MX$20.2K

81.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,743 £4,288

$3,943 MX$74.0K

45.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,565 £3,409

$6,158 MX$115.6K

-25.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,062 £2,286

$735 MX$13.8K

316.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

11.45

-55.37%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Exeter: October 25, 2026

Last update for Playa del Carmen: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Exeter

$1K 40.8%

Playa del Carmen

$381 31.6% 63.7% $669

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Exeter

$532 20.7%

Playa del Carmen

$137 11.4% 74.3% $395

Groceries & Markets

Exeter

$334 13%

Playa del Carmen

$255 21.2% 23.7% $79

Eating Out

Exeter

$320 12.4%

Playa del Carmen

$202 16.8% 36.7% $118

Getting Around

Exeter

$146 5.7%

Playa del Carmen

$50 4.2% 65.5% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Exeter

$125 4.9%

Playa del Carmen

$112 9.3% 11% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Exeter

$65 2.5%

Playa del Carmen

$67 5.6% 3.6% $2.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,381 in Exeter and $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Exeter pays about 4.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $98 in Exeter vs $43 in Playa del Carmen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $334 vs $255 per month, with Playa del Carmen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Exeter

🇲🇽 Playa del Carmen

🕒 Local time

15:45 3:45 PM

10:45 10:45 AM

5 h behind Exeter

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

130,800

149,923

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 MXN = 5.33 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 18.77 MXN (100 MXN = 5.33 USD). 1 EUR = 20.96 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Exeter Playa del Carmen 7,800 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Exeter
Playa del Carmen

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Exeter vs Playa del Carmen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,571 in Exeter and $1,204 in Playa del Carmen, so Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Exeter is about 4.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,381 in Exeter versus $980 in Playa del Carmen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Playa del Carmen – a meal for two runs $43 versus $98 in Exeter. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,571 per month in Exeter versus $1,204 in Playa del Carmen – Playa del Carmen is about 53% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,204 in Playa del Carmen versus $2,571 in Exeter, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Playa del Carmen but tight or insufficient in Exeter. The gap between the two cities makes Playa del Carmen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Playa del Carmen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Exeter. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.